After checking everything he needed, Dazai left Yokohama before dawn.
The city slowly disappeared behind the car window and replaced by broken roads, rusted buildings and half-dead street lights that flickered like they were struggling to stay alive. Hirotsu sat beside him. His eyes were sharp and alert as always.
Their destination was Suribachi City. Dazai never thought he would come back here. Not after everything that happened to him in this place.
The moment they crossed the city border, something heavy settled in his chest. It wasn't exactly pain. It was more like a dull pressure that was impossible for him to ignore.
Dazai also noticed that the Suribachi City had changed. Or maybe it hadn't.
The buildings were more damaged now and leaning at strange angles like tired old men. Bright graffitis covered the walls like territory marks, threats or names of gangs that came and went like disposable tools. The streets smelled of smoke, oil and old blood. There were no children playing or ordinary families walking around.
There were also men and women with hard eyes and quick hands everywhere. These people had learned early that weakness meant death. They were the people who survived because they had no other choice.
'Survival of the fittest, huh.'
Dazai leaned back slightly with half-lidded eyes and observing everything with detached interest. It was strange. This place should have stirred something inside him. But all he felt was distant and dullness.
Hirotsu noticed Dazai's silence but he said nothing. That was what Dazai appreciated most about him. Hirotsu knew a lot about Dazai. He also knew what happened in this city soaked in the blood of Dazai's past.
And yet, he never said a word about it. Hirotsu simply treated Dazai the same way he always did as a subordinate, a strategist and a kid with a sharp mouth. And Dazai was grateful for that.
In his short and disastrous life, there were very few adults he didn't hate. Aside from his parents, Hirotsu was the only one. But it was a thought Dazai would never say out loud.
The car stopped near a ruined intersection. From here, walking was safer. Cars drew too much attention in a city like this. As they stepped out, Dazai pulled a small red book from his coat pocket and opened it while walking. Hirotsu glanced at it briefly before he looked away.
The book was old. Its pages were worn and the corners of it was bent and soft from constant use. This book was actually a suicide manual.
It listed methods, theories, calculations and probabilities. It showed which ways hurt the least, which were fast and which failed most often. It was written in a calm and instructional tone as if explaining how to cook a simple meal. Dazai had actually read it more times than he could count.
And yet...
"Hmm..." Dazai hummed while flipping a page. "Still nothing painless."
Then he sighed. Apparently, dying without pain was far more difficult than it should be.
Pain annoyed him. Discomfort irritated him. If he was going to die, Dazai at least wanted it to be quiet and clean. But the book still offered no perfect solution.
"Although it's better than nothing." Dazai said before closing it and slipping it back into his pocket.
Hirotsu finally spoke.
"Be careful, Dazai-san." Hirotsu said in a low voice. "This city isn't stable right now."
Dazai glanced at him.
"Oh?"
"There's a conflict happening here." Hirotsu continued. "It was between the GSS and the Sheep."
"Uh-huh."
"Both groups are trying to rise." Hirotsu explained. "They want to prove themselves and to become the best contenders for Port Mafia recognition."
That made sense.
Suribachi City was the perfect breeding ground for desperation and ambition. Gangs fought here not for pride but for survival. Being acknowledged by the Port Mafia meant protection, resources and power. Without it, they were disposable.
"So they're fighting over scraps." Dazai said.
"Yes." Hirotsu replied. "And they won't hesitate to attack outsiders."
Dazai smiled faintly.
"How exciting."
Hirotsu gave him a sideways glance.
"We should still be careful, Dazai-san."
"I know." Dazai answered. "But it's still a little interesting."
They continued walking through the broken streets and blending into the chaos like shadows. Dazai looked around once more. He knew that the Suribachi City had taken his parents from him. It had swallowed his childhood whole. And now, it might be hiding the truth about the Old Boss.
'How ironic.'
He slipped his hands into his coat pockets. His expression looked calm and unreadable.
"I guess ghosts really do like coming back to the places where they died, huh." Dazai muttered.
Hirotsu didn't respond to that. But he walked just a little closer to Dazai as they disappeared deeper into the city. Hirotsu kept walking beside Dazai while his eyes never stopped their careful scan on the streets.
"I have another report, Dazai-san." the old man said quietly. "The Sheep are being led by a boy."
Dazai glanced at him lazily.
"A boy?"
"Yes. A powerful one." Hirotsu continued. "His name was Nakahara Chuuya. He is also known here as the King of the Sheep."
Dazai blinked once.
'King of the Sheep?'
That was a terrible title.
'What is he, a shepherd? Does he herd them into bedtime too?'
Dazai did not bother saying it out loud. He simply hummed in mild amusement with his hands still tucked into his pockets as they walked deeper into enemy territory. But before Hirotsu could add anything else, Dazai's phone suddenly rang. He took his phone out, glanced at the screen and answered it.
"...You're loud." Dazai flatly said and did not even bothering with a greeting.
(Hello to you too, Dazai-kun.)
On the other end, Mori's calm voice came through. But Dazai continued speaking while walking without slowing down.
"I've only been here for a short while but I already learned a lot just by walking around."
(Oh? And what did you discovered then?)
Dazai paused and let his eyes drifted over the ruined buildings.
"You see, the Old Boss was here."
There was a brief silence on the line. Then Dazai smiled faintly.
"He probably crawled out of hell since it seems he still has some unfinished personal business in the world of the living." Dazai continued in a joking voice.
Beside him, Hirotsu stiffened. His eyes widened just slightly and surprise was flashing across his face. He looked at Dazai with something close to awe. Despite Dazai's careless tone and constant jokes, he had already pieced together the truth with frightening speed.
But Dazai, who is still speaking into the phone, barely noticed it. And that was when it happened. Something slammed into his side and the impact was hard and brutal.
Dazai's body flew backward and crashed hard into a concrete wall. The air was knocked clean out of his lungs and his phone slipped from his hand and clattering to the ground.
"Dazai-san!" Hirotsu shouted.
The world rang for a moment. And soon, pain bloomed sharply through Dazai's ribs.
"...Tch." Dazai muttered.
He did not move right away. Instead, he slowly lifted his head and looked forward with calm eyes as if he hadn't just been kicked across the street.
There was a boy standing not too far from them. He has a bright orange hair that caught the light, a pair of sharp blue eyes and a build shorter than most but tightly coiled with strength. He wore jeans and a green jacket and his stance was relaxed but dangerous.
Then the boy laughed loudly.
"So this is the Port Mafia?" he mockingly said. "Man, you guys must really be short on people if you're sending a kid."
Dazai stared at him for a second. Then he sighed.
"That kick hurts, you know." Dazai said honestly.
Dazai pushed himself up just enough to sit against the wall and brushing the dust off his coat like this was a mild inconvenience. Without asking, Dazai already knew who that boy was.
'So this is the so-called King of the Sheep.'
The boy stepped closer with sharp and aggressive eyes.
"Enough chit-chat. Now choose."
He cracked his knuckles.
"Either you die right now or you start talking and tell me everything you know about the Port Mafia."
Dazai looked up at him. There was no fear in his eyes. There was only exhaustion and annoyance in it. Then he let out a soft sigh.
"Then I would appreciate it if you'll kill me now." Dazai casually said.
Chuuya blinked his eyes.
"Hah?!"
The air went completely still. But soon, Chuuya's lips slowly curled upward although it wasn't a friendly smile. It was sharp, excited but almost disappointed.
"I thought you would cry by now or beg for your life. That's what everyone does, y'know."
His sharp blue eyes stayed locked on Dazai for a few more seconds. He was openly measuring and watching him closely. But Dazai ignored it.
Instead, he tilted his head slightly and spoke in a flat and bored voice.
"You're a kid too."
"That's what everyone says." Chuuya replied. "Until they realize I am not just some stupid kid."
Chuuya stepped closer and let his shadow fell over Dazai.
"Now talk." Chuuya said sharply. "Tell me everything you know about Arahabaki."
Dazai's eyes flickered.
Arahabaki.
He had heard that name before. It was whispered by those screaming scientists while the lab burned. It was written in half-destroyed documents and buried in forbidden research files. He had looked into it later using the hidden network he had. Dazai knew it wasn't just a rumor. But Dazai also knew something else about it that he didn't want to discuss either.
So he lied.
"I don't know." he calmly said.
The kick came immediately. Chuuya's foot slammed into Dazai's side and sending pain through his ribs as his body hit the wall again.
A quiet grunt escaped Dazai. But nothing more. He just frowned. Years of brutal training flashed through his body like memory. He was thrown, beaten, starved, broken and forced to stand again. Compared to that, this pain was simply annoying but still manageable.
Chuuya stared down at him.
"Hah? You're still conscious?" Chuuya said with a smirk. "Wanna see how long you'll last?"
Dazai lifted his head slowly.
'This brat must be hanging out with weak people. I got beaten every day. They only stopped long enough to let me heal so they could beat me again. In short, this pain was simply nothing to me. Hah... So annoying.'
"Oi! If you finally talk, I'll let you go alive."
Dazai slowly blinked and looked at Chuuya. Then he sighed again.
"You should drink more milk."
"...What?"
"You're too short."
There was a quiet silence for a few seconds. And then...
"I'M ONLY FIFTEEN! I'M STILL GROWING!"
Dazai tilted his head.
"Sure you are." Dazai said with a smirk.
"You bastard!"
Dazai didn't know why he was bickering with this shortie. Maybe it was the pain and the strange thrill of standing so close to danger and feeling absolutely nothing.
Soon, a low sound escaped his throat. At first, it sounded like a breath. Then it turned into a laugh. Dazai lifted his head slowly with eyes gleaming with something childish and full of mischief.
"Heh... Fufufu..."
Dazai laughed again but softer this time.
"You know what? I'll put a curse on you."
Chuuya frowned.
"Hah?! The hell are you talking about?"
Dazai pushed himself up just enough to look Chuuya straight in the eye.
"I'm fifteen too but I'm going to grow way taller than you."
For a second, there was another complete silence. Then...
"YOU LITTLE—"
"You're the little one here!"
"I said I am still growing!"
Dazai smiled. It was empty and sharp but he was also enjoying the chaos more than the threat.
"See?" Dazai said lightly. "The curse is already working."
"I'LL KILL YOU!"